{"id":1,"date":"2024-12-20T10:46:01","date_gmt":"2024-12-20T10:46:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/?p=1"},"modified":"2026-10-06T18:25:34","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T18:25:34","slug":"entrevista-juani-palop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/en\/entrevista-juani-palop\/","title":{"rendered":"Juani\u202fPalop Interview: \u00abA Great Chamber Musician Must Listen More Than They Play\u00bb"},"content":{"rendered":"

You have played in many ensembles. What do you think makes a great chamber musician?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A great chamber musician must listen more than they play.\nThrough experience and a certain skill, you have to be able to serve whatever is happening around you and act accordingly. That doesn\u2019t mean being passive\u2014quite the opposite: knowing when to take the initiative and when to serve another person or voice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To be \u00abat the service of\u00bb, to recognise what the music needs and act on it, you have to develop your imagination to the fullest and learn how music works from the inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That lets you know what role you have to assume at every moment, because that role truly changes constantly: things like dynamics, agogics and intonation stop being something solid and become something fluid, adaptable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The ability to maintain that fluidity within a musical discourse that has aesthetic consistency and a solid technical basis is, in my opinion, the soul of chamber music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another thing I find super important for chamber work is the ability to give and receive feedback<\/em>, to accept what your colleagues tell you with sportsmanship. You need to keep your feet on the ground and not have an inflated ego\u2014one of those that later deflates and ends up empty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It isn\u2019t about having no ego, opinions, tastes, or preferences, but about finding an inner balance, having a well\u2011adjusted self\u2011image, so you can withstand the constant mirror that chamber music is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you could be a student again, what advice would you give yourself?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u00abIf I were a student again, the advice I\u2019d give myself would be: don\u2019t focus only on the saxophone.<\/em> Remember to eat well, exercise, stretch. And look at yourself in a more holistic sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trust that this will bring you many benefits and that this is a long\u2011term career. It\u2019s not about winning this or that competition. That\u2019s important, but what matters most is that you can maintain good mental, physical and emotional health over the years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To avoid burnout and keep enjoying what you do, pay attention to your body and your nutrition. Habits like drinking more water, not eating so many sweets and carbs, going out every day for at least an hour even if it\u2019s just for a walk, doing something aerobic\u2014running, cycling, anything that keeps you active.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And, above all, don\u2019t act out of desperation.<\/em> Know that after today there is also tomorrow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At school they never taught me this. I would cram the night before, pull an all\u2011nighter, get an eight out of ten, and then forget everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the saxophone I wasn\u2019t that extreme, but I also didn\u2019t know how to study with a mid\u2011 or long\u2011term view. I didn\u2019t understand that \u00abI\u2019m going to study two hours every day and trust the process\u00bb. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I learned that here in the Netherlands, watching my Japanese and German friends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They simply knew what they had to do, did it every day and that\u2019s it. They trusted a long\u2011term process, and the results I witnessed completely revolutionised my way of thinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They simply knew what they had to do, did it every day and that\u2019s it. They trusted a long\u2011term process, and the results I witnessed completely revolutionised my way of thinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That leads to a disconnection between our inner world and what we\u2019re supposed to be doing. That connection is absolutely vital to carry out creative processes like ours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Spain, I think that mentality is harder for us. We\u2019re taught to give everything in a short time, but in reality, if you study an average of an hour and a half a day for a year, you advance more than if you spend three months studying five hours a day without rest\u2014and maybe you\u2019re happier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019d also tell myself: listen to yourself more.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Find out when you\u2019re most lucid and take advantage of those moments. And also identify when you need to rest and allow yourself to do so.\u00bb<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is something you always try to transmit to your students?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u00abIn general I spend a large part of my teaching removing interferences:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mental: Something I see a lot in my students is that their musical imagination is far more developed than what they can pour into the saxophone at a given moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I try to help them connect that imagination with what they actually play; I try to make the fact of having the instrument in their mouth not block them, but let them express themselves freely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Physical\/technical: Tensions in the embouchure, tensions in the throat\u2014things that aren\u2019t working and keep them from playing and conveying their ideas properly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For me, it\u2019s fundamental to help them eliminate those interferences so there is a healthier energy exchange between them and the music they want to make.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That they can release the air naturally, connect their imagination with the instrumental elements.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What excites you most about the first edition of Eibarsax?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u00abWhat excites me most about Eibarsax is the opportunity to learn from my colleagues and from the students, hopefully to pass on to new generations what I\u2019ve learned over the years and help them on their own path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m also very excited to play in one of the evening concerts and share that moment with everyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m excited to share, and to do so in a schedule and structure designed with time and physical spaces so we don\u2019t burn out\u2014so we can not only give energy but also receive it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m really looking forward to hearing my colleagues\u2019 concerts and the students\u2019 concerts; it\u2019s almost a mixed role, that feeling of being half teacher, half student, because I expect to learn a lot from my colleagues, from the students, from whatever happens and from the synergies that arise during the week, so I\u2019m also excited as the eternal learner I consider myself.\u00bb<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If your saxophone could talk, what would it say about you?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u00abI think my saxophones would have good words for me, because I try to stay connected to them when I play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A long time ago I stopped going against the instrument\u2014mentally, emotionally, or technically. I always try to go with the instrument.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think if my saxophones could talk, they\u2019d say something like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJuani is a good travel companion, a partner in crime with whom we can always connect one way or another.\" <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I also think my saxophones are entertained by the musical things I tell them and by everything I invent for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So yes, I think they\u2019re entertained, they have fun, and in some way we give life to each other.\u00bb <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Has tocado en muchos ensembles. \u00bfQu\u00e9 crees que hace a un gran m\u00fasico de c\u00e1mara? Un gran m\u00fasico de c\u00e1mara debe escuchar m\u00e1s que tocar. A trav\u00e9s de la experiencia y de cierta habilidad, hay que ser capaz de estar al servicio de lo que pasa alrededor tuyo y actuar en consecuencia. Eso no significa […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2910,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"disabled","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entrevistas"],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/juani-palop-tocando.png",818,565,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/juani-palop-tocando-150x150.png",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/juani-palop-tocando-300x207.png",300,207,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/juani-palop-tocando-768x530.png",768,530,true],"large":["https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/juani-palop-tocando.png",818,565,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/juani-palop-tocando.png",818,565,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/juani-palop-tocando.png",818,565,false],"trp-custom-language-flag":["https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/juani-palop-tocando-18x12.png",18,12,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"admin","author_link":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/en\/author\/admin\/"},"uagb_comment_info":14,"uagb_excerpt":"Has tocado en muchos ensembles. \u00bfQu\u00e9 crees que hace a un gran m\u00fasico de c\u00e1mara? Un gran m\u00fasico de c\u00e1mara debe escuchar m\u00e1s que tocar. A trav\u00e9s de la experiencia y de cierta habilidad, hay que ser capaz de estar al servicio de lo que pasa alrededor tuyo y actuar en consecuencia. Eso no significa…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2912,"href":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1\/revisions\/2912"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2910"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eibarsax.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}